I know there aren't many Hip Hop fans on this board, but I've seen a few around. Ja just released a mixtape track where he takes on all of Shady/Aftermath. I personally think he's lost his mind. 50 cent was already cutting into him pretty well. I shudder to think what Eminem will respond with but I see Ja getting destroyed (which I'm looking forward to). Anyone else have any thoughts on this?

JaRule is WACK STATUS. His last 6 songs or so have been duets with some R&B chick about "Thug Lovin" or some other "thug" related nonsense. I remember when this guy was all about drive-bys and killing people and all this other rough talk. Now he's SINGING (yes, singing) ballads about being all in love in EVERY song? TRASH. He sucks.

Oh and by the way, JaRule? Write this down: "Thug" is NOT a verb. There's no such thing as "Thug Lovin", you and your lady of the moment can not be "straight thuggin", and please tell that girl in your latest song to stop saying she loves it when you "thug" her. WTF does that mean? It sounds rediculous. As a matter of fact, by the power invested in me by the state of California, you are hereby BANNED from using the word "thug" in a song or in public ever again.

And yes, he did lose his mind trying to "feud" with Eminem. There's not one rapper out right now that can go toe to toe with Eminem in a battle of diss records and come out on top, or even come out of it looking halfway respectable for that matter! Benzino? Irv Gotta? JaRue? Who ever. It's over.

Ja Has NO credibility in the rap game anymore. His "thug" past has been shown to be nothing but a joke and he's fallen into the crutch of using Ashanti to sell records. Ashanti doesnt need Ja Rule and would probably be better off without him. I do think however that Ja has some future as a producer. Just so long as he doesnt piss Everyone off.

A few years ago, Ja Rule played at my college (at this time, "Holla" had just come out, I believe), and he played all of like six songs and left, one of them not even his own, but a song he was featured on (Jay-Z's "Can I Get A..."). He also played to a tiny room, though that probably has more to do with the fact that I went to WhiteBread U. than anything else.

Anyway, the other day I was looking through my basement and found some old promo flyers that I got from shows, record stores, etc. and came across one for Ja Rule's Venni Vetti Vecci album. On the back it has a Mafia style diagram of The Murderers: Irv Gotti as Boss, Ja as Underboss, and everyone else as Murderers. First of all, I said "I think it's so stupid when rappers think they're in the mob." Then I said "Man, I almost forgot about that short while when Ja Rule was trying to pass himself off as a gangsta tough guy."

As for Ashanti, well, I'm only two degrees of separation from her. Yup, a good buddy of mine went to high school with her Right Here....on Long Island! ::Thumbs Up:: For me, that's enough criteria to start hanging off of a celebrity and saying that I've got connections.

(edited by Dagent913 on 5.4.03 1613)What if your grandfather was a kazoo?

ja rule is a pussy....how can he still act like he's a gangter when all he does is pussy r&b duets with ashanti.....and others...shady records will destroy murder inc. now rap isn't my favorite type of music but i have heard enough....and i know eminem will crush ja in a rap battle....just like fred durhst benzino...icp..timberland...and others that i can't think of now...

Originally posted by CerebusIs this also like Ice T thinking HE's a gangsta when he plays a cop on a network TV show? Does he still get Pimpin cred?

Ice T still gets his pimpin' cred. Ice T really was a pimp and a gangsta. He sold crack and hoes in LA long before he went into rap. The closest Ja Rule has ever come to being a pimp and a gangsta is when he raps on his records.

JaRule is WACK STATUS. His last 6 songs or so have been duets with some R&B chick about "Thug Lovin" or some other "thug" related nonsense. I remember when this guy was all about drive-bys and killing people and all this other rough talk. Now he's SINGING (yes, singing) ballads about being all in love in EVERY song? TRASH. He sucks.

Oh and by the way, JaRule? Write this down: "Thug" is NOT a verb. There's no such thing as "Thug Lovin", you and your lady of the moment can not be "straight thuggin", and please tell that girl in your latest song to stop saying she loves it when you "thug" her. WTF does that mean? It sounds rediculous. As a matter of fact, by the power invested in me by the state of California, you are hereby BANNED from using the word "thug" in a song or in public ever again.

And yes, he did lose his mind trying to "feud" with Eminem. There's not one rapper out right now that can go toe to toe with Eminem in a battle of diss records and come out on top, or even come out of it looking halfway respectable for that matter! Benzino? Irv Gotta? JaRue? Who ever. It's over.

Amen to all the above, my brother. Much distain to JaRule. On a side note, I also have to add that Ashanti, along with others who have not (yet?)dueted with JaRule (Nivea, Amanda Perez) can.....not.....sing. Pop/R&B radio is filled with R&B-type singers who all sound the same. And lately, I haven't heard anyone who can actually sing. Even Mariah Carey's new stuff is awful.

(edited by gargs on 5.4.03 2035)"There's no need to fear. UNDERDOG is here!"

JaRule is WACK STATUS. His last 6 songs or so have been duets with some R&B chick about "Thug Lovin" or some other "thug" related nonsense. I remember when this guy was all about drive-bys and killing people and all this other rough talk. Now he's SINGING (yes, singing) ballads about being all in love in EVERY song? TRASH. He sucks.

Oh and by the way, JaRule? Write this down: "Thug" is NOT a verb. There's no such thing as "Thug Lovin", you and your lady of the moment can not be "straight thuggin", and please tell that girl in your latest song to stop saying she loves it when you "thug" her. WTF does that mean? It sounds rediculous. As a matter of fact, by the power invested in me by the state of California, you are hereby BANNED from using the word "thug" in a song or in public ever again.

And yes, he did lose his mind trying to "feud" with Eminem. There's not one rapper out right now that can go toe to toe with Eminem in a battle of diss records and come out on top, or even come out of it looking halfway respectable for that matter! Benzino? Irv Gotta? JaRue? Who ever. It's over.

A co-worker of mine tried to convince me that there's nothing wrong with Ja Rule's endless singing duets (and I use the term singing loosely), by pointing out that LL Cool J basically gets away with the same thing these days. I helpfully pointed out to him that LL has 10 albums and a decade's worth of material that includes party jams, nasty battle raps, and so forth, to fall back on. LL has pretty much earned the right to take his music wherever he wants to right now. Ja Rule? Not so much.

My roommate and I came to a simple conclusion after watching that HORRIBLE "Thug Lovin'" duet with Bobby Brown, the most horrible video I have ever seen coupled with the worst Hip Hop song I've ever heard (on a side note, people talk about Axl Rose's voice deteriorating -- listen to Brown these days). The conclusion was that Ja has the most off the chart ego ever seen in hip hop, topped by people surrounding him who feed into it, and tell him only what he wants to hear (I mean, someone really should have stepped in and told him "Hey Ja...this duet with Bobby Brown? Worst Idea Ever."). He goes on spouting this "I'm the Michael Jordan of Rap" -- while in the same breath declaring that he doesn't give a damn about being the best lyricist or anything like that -- and ACTUALLY BELIEVES IT. Irv Gotti and the rest just feed into the man's ego, as long as it feeds their pocketbooks.

That sad thing is, he doesn't even seem to want to be himself -- he wants to be friggin' 2Pac! (Declaring himself the closest thing to Pac alive today, giving shout outs to Suge Knight, the crosses tatooed on his back, etc.). And need I remind anyone of quite possibly the worst hip hop theft of all-time -- that damned lifting of "So Many Tears" for that horrible song "The Pledge"?

I'm not worried about this beef with Eminem. 50 Cent's already nailed Ja Rule pretty hard, and Eminem should have no problem -- Eminem can go with Canibus, and Ja Rule isn't even in Canibus' league (read the lyrics from Ja Rule's Eminem disses -- I'm thinking he should maybe remember what actually happened to Jimmy Hoffa).

As for Eminem being the best battle MC? I love Eminem, but I'm not completely sure about that. Canibus can lay out some decent stuff, as can LL (when motivated), and KRS-One (again when motivated and given a worthy opponent). Also, don't sleep on guys like Kurupt, Daz, and Lil' Flip...some of their battle stuff is pretty nice too.

Originally posted by shockdownAs for Eminem being the best battle MC? I love Eminem, but I'm not completely sure about that. Canibus can lay out some decent stuff, as can LL (when motivated), and KRS-One (again when motivated and given a worthy opponent). Also, don't sleep on guys like Kurupt, Daz, and Lil' Flip...some of their battle stuff is pretty nice too.

Those guys are good too, dont get me wrong. But none of them wanna see Eminem lyrically, especially Canibus. Eminem vs. KRS would be a good match-up, but I still thing Em could take him. LL would get taken out too. The rest of those dudes would just resort to gangsta stuff ("ME AND MY HOMIES WILL KILL YOU WHITEY~!") and lose too.

To echo everyone else's statements, Ja Rule is a bitch. He's always been a bitch and he's always gonna be a bitch. He was lucky that he came out at the right time... about when DMX was goin off the hook coast to coast mainly because of his voice. But the problem with comparing Ja to DMX is that while their voices are kinda similar, DMX tells stories about being billy badass, and for some reason, you BELIEVE him. Ja? Not so much. Just look at the guy; he's like 5'1 and he looks like a rat. I don't know what the fuck he was smoking that would make him think that he could even hold a candle to Em, 50, and the rest. It's just stupid. There's that story floating around about how 50 got his Mavado watch. IIRC, 50 held up Ja in Atlanta for all of his jewelery. Ja being the bitch he is, gave 50 the shit. Then 50 held it for ransom, saying he wouldn't give it back unless Ja got him this watch. And of course, Ja, being the bitch that he is, gave him the watch in exchange for his jewels.

As far as Eminem being the best battle rapper goes, he's not the greatest of all time, but he is the best out there right now. Battling anyone that was already mentioned doesn't really do anything for him, it just lets him air out his shit. KRS is the best battle rapper of all time IMO. LL is top 3. But what would Eminem have to gain from battling these guys? Street cred? He's got that already with 50. That guy oozes legitimacey.

Be peaceful, be courteous, obey the law, respect everyone; but if someone puts his hand on you, send him to the cemetery. -Malcom X

That's a new twist...I'd always heard that it was someone 50 knew who stuck Ja Rule for his jewelry, not 50 himself.

Thinking about it all just makes me long for the days when there were actually battles based on who was the best lyricist and seeing who's the hottest, not about gunplay or money, or personal crap. The problem with Eminem is that he'll likely never get to see a batle with a high profile hip-hop artist who is also as good as he is, unles maybe he battles KRS-One or Nas (I say high profile because there are probably dudes coming up on the underground like Em did who are also pretty good, but may never see the light of day).

Give me the days of KRS-One vs. Shan or Kool Moe Dee vs. LL, and so forth. Not this Ja Rule "throw your mic down and your guns up" nonsense.

(edited by shockdown on 6.4.03 1436)Power flows to the one who knows how -- desire alone is not enough.

"It's just like the story of the grasshopper and the octopus. All year long, the grasshopper kept burying acorns for the winter, while the octopus mooched off his girlfriend and watched TV. But then the winter came, and the grasshopper died, and the octopus ate all his acorns. And also he got a racecar. Is any of this getting through to you?"-----Phillip J. Fry, Futurama

Originally posted by KidbrooklynThere's that story floating around about how 50 got his Mavado watch. IIRC, 50 held up Ja in Atlanta for all of his jewelery. Ja being the bitch he is, gave 50 the shit. Then 50 held it for ransom, saying he wouldn't give it back unless Ja got him this watch. And of course, Ja, being the bitch that he is, gave him the watch in exchange for his jewels.

Ehehehehehehe... like "How To Rob" wasn't hilarious enough as-is. (snickers just THINKING about how Fitty would rob Big Pun)

And as for Shady taking out Murder Inc.: You're assuming they won't self-destruct. Feds might do something to speed them along.

Doctor J, in terms of 50, I wasn't talking about his street cred through his lyrics or songs... I was talking about his reputation as someone who isn't afraid to do what (he percieves) needs to be done. LL was a great battle rapper, but I don't really see him doing anything violent towards another rapper without getting his ass handed to him ten times worse. 50, on the other hand, would end it quickly. He's be in jail and possibly death row, but he still has street cred.

Be peaceful, be courteous, obey the law, respect everyone; but if someone puts his hand on you, send him to the cemetery. -Malcom X

Originally posted by CripDid Ja ever have any cred? He's the black Vanilla Ice.

Easy now......

Ja Rule has spent way to much time in the limelight. He is almost as over-exposed as J'Lo.

Such a bright future, but I fear he will go the way of Mase!

Ok, maybe that was a tad too extrme in terms of example, he still blows a big one.

Personally I can't see Em even responding, for real.

Looks like Ja is attempting to gain some cred by taking on Em, why should Em bother? Those that have heard the tape know Ja is out of his depth, he can't prove anything to them. Unless it gets mainstream play, Em responding will be playing into Ja's hands.

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